I. Renko is an RTC correspondent. He filed this report from Lexington after Thursday’s Second Round game between #8 Colorado State and #9 Missouri. Follow him on Twitter @IRenkoHoops.

Three Key Takeaways:

1. The Kid is Alright — Colorado State point guard Dorian Green had one ineffective game against UNLV after injuring his ankle in the Mountain West tournament, so heading into tonight, his ability to perform at his usual level was an open question. Yesterday, coach Larry Eustachy said that Green wasn’t a hundred percent, but that he needed to play like it, because he’s the quarterback of the team. Well, Green answered the call, and in a big way. He exploded for 25, repeatedly knifing through Missouri’s defense and hitting jumpers.
   

   Much like his expression, Colton Iverson and the rest of the Rams played like they wanted their season to continue. (AP)

2. Colorado State Owns the Glass — On the season, the Rams rank first in the nation in offensive rebounding percentage and second in defensive rebounding percentage. They showed why tonight. Missouri is actually a top 10 offensive rebounding team in its own right, and yet the Rams absolutely dominated them on the boards, pulling down a whopping 91 percent of Mizzou’s misses and 43 percent of their own misses. This could be a genuine problem for the Rams’s next opponent, Louisville, which has trouble protecting the defensive glass. They get by without it, because the rest of their defense is so good, but if Colorado State can take care of the ball — yes, I know, BIG if — their rebounding ability could make it a competitive game.
3. Mizzou Found Its Offense, But Not Its Defense — After a rough start in which they made just five of their first 18 shots, Missouri’s offense started to click, and they made 10 of their next 11. Phil Pressey, the engine of the Tigers’ offense, scored all eight of his points in the final five minutes of the first half after missing his first five shots. But Missouri still couldn’t stop Colorado State, as the Rams poured in 47 first-half points. It didn’t get any better in the second half, and perhaps worse. While the Rams’ three-point shooting tailed off, they easily compensated by attacking the lane, where Missouri frequently offered little to no resistance.

Star of the Game: I talked about Green’s big game above, so let me use this space to highlight the importance of Rams’ center Colton Iverson. Iverson scored just four points, but when he was in the game, the Rams outscored Missouri by 24 points — far and away the best +/- mark of the team. Iverson’s rebounding and presence inside was critical to CSU’s success. To emphasize the point: Iverson went to the bench with his fourth foul with eight minutes left, and three minutes later, Missouri had cut the Rams’ lead from 14 to seven. Eustachy promptly reinserted Iverson with four fouls and five minutes to play, and the Rams went on a 9-1 run.

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Andrew Murawa is an RTC correspondent. He filed this report after the Round of 64 NCAA Tournament game between #6 Arizona and #11 Belmont in Salt Lake City.

Three Key Takeaways.

1. First Half Domination. It’s the same old song and dance for Belmont: great season, plenty of love on Selection Sunday as a possible Cinderella, then they come out and lay an egg in the tournament against a bigger and more athletic opponent. The Bruins turned in perhaps their worst half of the season on Thursday evening, grabbing just 9.1% of their own misses and only 50% of their opponents misses, while also getting outshot 52.2% to 29.6% in effective field goal percentage. While senior Ian Clark cobbled together enough offense to tally 11 points, the rest of his team combined to make just 2-of-17 field goal attempts. All of which combined to equal a 32-20 halftime deficit. Belmont played Arizona pretty tight in the second half, but the first-half damage was done.
   

   Mark Lyon was the star of the game for Arizona. (AP)

2. Too Much Size and Athleticism. With the tallest guy on Belmont checking in at just 6’7” and with Arizona featuring four rotation guys along the frontline at least that tall, not to mention significantly more athletic, you probably should have seen this coming to some extent. But the sheer level of the domination along the frontline was startling. Brandon Ashley, Kaleb Tarczewski and Grant Jerrett have been improving slowly but surely all year and today, after getting through the grind of the Pac-12 and similar level athletes, they seemed to get a lot of joy out of beating up on overmatched opponents. And Mark Lyons? After seeing guys like Jahii Carson and Larry Drew II and Dominic Artis and Spencer Dinwiddie, he seemed to know he could get by whichever Belmont guard was checking him and get into the lane with ease. Credit the Wildcats for exploiting mismatches and advancing, but things are about to get much more difficult.
3. Pac-12. Underrated? On a day when the Pac-12 went 3-0 in the Tournament you’ve got to start to wonder just how good this conference is. They haven’t had much of a chance to prove it outside of the league since December, consider what Oregon did to Oklahoma State today. And consider that Arizona, for instance, has wins against teams like Miami, Florida, San Diego State and now Belmont in their undefeated non-conference slate, but struggled to seven losses against Pac-12 competition. Maybe the Pac-12 is better than we thought?

Star of the Game. Mark Lyons, Arizona. Look, Lyons is never going to be the type of distributing point guard that would fit in so well on this Arizona team. But tonight at the very least he was the guy Mark Lyons is really good at being. He attacked off the bounce and seemed to get to the rack just about whenever he wanted. And when the ball found its way to him around the perimeter in the halfcourt game, he stepped up and drilled catch-and-shoot jumpers. And, especially in the first half, he harassed Kerron Johnson and got inside his head, limiting Belmont’s second-leading scorer to just four first-half points.

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Will Tucker is a RTC correspondent. Will is covering the Auburn Hills pod of the Midwest Region. You can also find him on Twitter @blrdswag.

Three Key Takeaways:

1. Both teams tried their hand at defense, but their true characters shown through. A deceptive low number of possessions in the low-scoring first half obscured the fact that both teams shot above 40%, and the second half showcase the offensive efficiency of the Wolverines and Jackrabbits as the pace picked up. Both teams came into this game averaging around 65 possessions, but the uptempo pace played to Michigan’s favor once Nate Wolters went cold and couldn’t keep up with Tim Hardaway Jr. and Glenn Robinson III.
   

   Tim Hardaway Jr. had an outstanding game for Michigan. (Getty)

2. Michigan was uncharacteristically careless with the ball against a mediocre defensive team in the first half, but they actually settled down once the pace picked up. The Wolverines turned it over seven times in the first half, approaching their average of 9.2 per game, but would only commit 2 turnovers after halftime despite playing at a frenzied pace. It bodes well for the Wolverines should they end up facing VCU’s “havoc” press in the Third Round, and it’s encouraging that Trey Burke managed the game well despite starting 0-of-7 from the field with two early turnovers. The point guard finished with seven assists and didn’t cough it up again for the rest of the game.
3. Michigan enjoyed a much more noticeable home-court advantage than did their rivals from East Lansing earlier in the day. That’s not to disparage the Spartans, because the first session still boasted an attendance of nearly 19,000. But several factors –– weekday afternoon versus evening; a high-octane, offense-oriented opponent led by a cult-superstar point guard –– made the Wolverines’ first tournament game much more festive, energetic and well attended. Nate Wolters repeated after the game that he didn’t believe the atmosphere affected his team’s play, but Hardaway suggested the familiar environment helped his shooting: “We’ve played here before last year, so we know what to expect out of the court and out of the rims. It felt good.” 

Star of the Game. Tie: Tim Hardaway Jr. and Glenn Robinson III. While Trey Burke struggled to get it going, Hardaway essentially kept the Jackrabbits from building a substantial lead, hitting four first-half three pointers to pace Brayden Carlson and Nate Wolters. In the second half, Robinson took over where Hardaway left off, draining four 3-pointers in the first three and a half minutes. The two combined for 42 points on 16 of 22 shooting, hitting 8 of 10 from beyond the arc.

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RTC is providing game-by-game coverage throughout Thursday from the San Jose pod.

Three Key Takeaways.

Cal Took Care of UNLV in Its “Home” Game

1. Cal Tried Very Hard to Give This Away. California outplayed, outhustled and outlasted UNLV in the #5/#12 match-up this evening, but the Bears certainly made an adventure out of it at the free throw line. After taking what seemed to be a commanding seven-point lead and heading to the line to salt things away with 45 seconds left, the Bears proceeded to miss eight of their next 12 attempts, giving UNLV multiple opportunities to stop the clock and narrow the gap. Although the lead was reduced to one point with a couple of ticks left, the Rebels never got the lead and their disappointing season mercifully came to an end. As for the rest of the game, the Bears clearly were not going to give this game up without a best effort after last year’s First Four debacle in Dayton against South Florida. Allen Crabbe (19 points), Justin Cobbs (13 points), Richard Solomon (11 points) and Robert Thurman (12 points) ate up the lazy UNLV interior defense, repeatedly and effectively driving and dishing for dunks and layups. Cal deserved to win the game, frankly, but the Bears were still lucky to finish off the victory.
2. Same As It Ever Was With UNLV. University of No Legitimacy in Vegas, that’s the Runnin’ Rebels new name after this season. When you can bring out a frontcourt of a future lottery pick in Anthony Bennett, two other talented guys in Mike Moser and Khem Birch, and a solid if not spectacular backcourt of Anthony Marshall and Bryce Dejean-Jones and Katin Reinhardt… well, let’s just say that Billy Donovan won a couple of national titles with a similar makeup. Dave Rice? He lost to Fresno State, got run out of his own gym by New Mexico in the MW championship game, and suffered a complete meltdown of disinterest and desperation as a #5 seed against California today. Bennett finished with 13/11 on 3-of-10 shooting but he barely cared, while Moser spent much of the game looking lost. This is the team that the Rebels became, for better or worse, and UNLV fans will have to live with an offseason of what might have been with this much talent on the roster.
3. Is the Pac-12 Actually Good This Year? With the #12 seed Cal Bears and Oregon Ducks out of the Pac-12 knocking off #5 seeds here in San Jose, and #6 seed Arizona easily handling bracket darling #11 Belmont in Salt Lake City as well, the question needs to be asked. UCLA and Colorado have yet to play, but with an early 3-0 record in three games that many were choosing league members to lose, this could be a harbinger that perhaps the conference really was quite a bit better than people thought it was this year. It’s worth tracking the rest of the weekend, that’s for sure.

Star of the Game. Robert Thurman, California. Not only did Thurman come off the bench for 19 solid post minutes that include a plurality of chin-ups on the rim, but he also helped to neutralize the size and strength of UNLV’s Anthony Bennett inside. Perhaps even more impressively, his hustle and scrap was contagious among his teammates, as he at one point met Bennett at the rim for a big-time block that seemingly shocked everyone — perhaps even Thurman himself.

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I. Renko is an RTC correspondent. He filed this report from Lexington after Thursday’s Second Round game between Louisville and North Carolina A&T. Follow him on Twitter @IRenkoHoops.

Three Key Takeaways:

Peyton Siva and Company Rolled On…

1. Louisville Went for the Knockout Punch Early — The Cardinals didn’t waste any time tonight, unleashing their full-court press early and often. By the 10-minute mark of the first half, they’d forced eight turnovers and led 25-7. That was all the margin that Louisville would need, as NC A&T never got any closer than 14 points the rest of the way. All told, Louisville’s press forced 27 turnovers, which the Cardinals converted into 34 points. The competition will get stiffer, but this kind of defense is what has made Louisville the team to beat.
2. NC A&T’s Fighting Spirit — The odds that North Carolina A&T faced tonight were as long as any that March has to offer. Just 48 hours removed from their last game, with only a day to prepare for Louisville’s vaunted pressure defense, and in front of a rabidly pro-Louisville crowd, the Aggies showed tremendous heart just by competing for 40 minutes. After falling behind 25-7, they actually outscored Louisville over the next 15 minutes of the game, until the Cardinals reeled off a 14-0 run to effectively end the game. Kudos, too, to the NC A&T fans who made the trip to Louisville. Their enthusiastic support never wavered. We spend a lot of time in March celebrating the underdogs who win, but it’s worth taking a moment to appreciate the ones who lose with dignity and determination.
3. The ‘Ville Practiced Its Rebounding — You don’t want to overstate the point, given the quality of the competition, but Louisville had a strong performance in one area that has been a weakness for them this year — defensive rebounding. They pulled down almost 80 percent of the Aggies’ misses. Louisville tends to win despite this flaw, and it’s almost an accepted fact of their pressure/zone defense, but they need to be very wary about yielding too much in their next game. Each of their potential Third Round opponents (Colorado State, Missouri) is ranked in the top 10 in the nation in offensive rebounding and will be looking to pound the glass.

Star of the Game: I don’t think Russ Smith gets the attention and praise he deserves as the best player on the best team in the country (yes, he is the best player on the team). He was left off the USBWA’s and The Sporting News’ first and second All-American teams. A dominant performance may not not turn any heads, but it confirmed what many of us already knew about Smith’s ability. He led the attack tonight at both ends of the court, scoring 23 points on 10-of-16 field goal shooting and recording eight steals.

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Andrew Murawa is an RTC correspondent. He filed this report after the Round of 64 NCAA Tournament game between #1 Gonzaga and #16 Southern in Salt Lake City.

Three Key Takeaways.

Kelly Olynyk and His Troops Sure Had to Sweat on Thursday

1. Keeping It Close. After keeping it tight for the better part of 30 minutes, it looked like Gonzaga was ready to pull away and ease to victory. Kelly Olynyk had scored 15 of the Zags first 18 points in the second half and with Southern having no one with the size and quickness to match him, we were ready for the inevitable double-digit win. But then something funny happened. Some of the Bulldog jumpers stopped going down, they turned it over a few times and the next thing you know, following some key blocks and increasingly improbable three-point shots going down for the Jaguars, we were all tied up with under four to go. But down the stretch, the Gonzaga guards took the baton from Olynyk and between Kevin Pangos and Gary Bell Jr., scored the final ten points for the Zags to seal the game.
2. So That’s A Number One Seed? There was plenty of talk since the brackets were announced about the long-term viability of the Bulldogs after earning their first-ever one-seed. And, the early returns are not promising. Certainly, the Jaguars needed to hit some insane three-pointers to stick around, and Olynyk looked at times like a guy capable of overpowering his smaller opponents, but this was not an impressive performance by the Zags. Elias Harris turned in a 2-for-10 outing and got rejected at the rim twice by smaller Southern defenders and the Bulldog backcourt caused absolutely no problems for the quick Southern backcourt. With a tough and talented Wichita State team awaiting in the next round, Gonzaga is going to have to play much better. One area where the Zags do deserve credit thought: down the stretch as the game tightened up where it could have been really easy for them to feel the pressure, they played with poise in the final few minutes.
3. Southern Celebrations. We’ll have hazy memories of these guys years in the future, so let’s take some time right now to recognize some of the great performances turned in by Jaguar players today. Off-guard Derick Beltran time and time again hit big shots, knocking down four threes as well as a pair of late two-point jumpers in his defender’s face; point guard Jameel Grace was nails throughout, getting into the lane in order to create opportunities, even if he hit just one of his eight field goal attempts; Brandon Moore and Javan Mitchell patrolled the paint, racking up seven blocks between them against taller opponents. And all told, the Jaguars got terrific performances by guys up and down the roster.

Star of the Game.  Southern University. I could pick somebody from the winning team here (Olynyk’s 21/10 or Pangos’ 16 and big shots down the stretch are good candidates), but really, the star here was Southern University from start to finish. And I can’t even single out one of the players. From head coach Roman Banks on down the line, the Jaguars all deserve credit.

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RTC is reporting on the NCAA Second Round games at the San Jose pod today.

Three Key Takeaways.

Oregon Is a Dangerous Team As a Clearly Underseeded #12

1. The Ducks Were No #12 Seed. And they played like it. From the opening tip of this game, Dana Altman’s team played with a moxie and a poise that said, “no way in hell are we a #12 seed!” A lot of pundits suggested that the Ducks would play today as if they had been slighted, and they did. They stepped on Oklahoma State’s neck early, running out to a 19-12 lead and never really looking back. OSU struggled shooting the ball throughout, ending up with a brick-laying 39% performance. For every mini-run from the Cowboys, Oregon always had some kind of an answer — it was clear to everyone in the building, and many of those were Oregon partisans, that the Ducks were the better team. We’re not sure what the NCAA Selection Committee was thinking with that #12 seed, but this proves even more than before how much of a whiff that decision was.
2. Marcus Smart, Not Impressive. (note: after the game, Smart’s right hand was wrapped in ice and he said it was “killing him.” – even if the injury gave him problems after that point in the game, he still could have performed better prior to that point) I voted for Smart as the National Freshman of the Year for the USBWA last weekend, and after this performance — 14 points on 5-of-13 shooting, eight rebounds, four assists, five steals, and five turnovers — I’m not sure what to think. He filled the stat sheet, sure, but he never once really wowed me with either his game or his leadership. I know he’s probably capable of much more, but a truly great point guard gives his team what it needs to succeed. Today, Oklahoma State needed him to go off for 25 points because his typical scoring mates such as Le’Bryan Nash (10 points) and Phil Forte (five points) weren’t actively involved.
3. Dominic Artis is Back and Oregon is a Different Team Because of It. Oregon rose to the top 10 in America driven by its dynamic point guard Dominic Artis before his midseason injury. In the last two weeks as he’s worked his way back into the lineup, he hasn’t looked quite as dynamic or on top of his game as he had before the injury. In the last six games, for example, he had scored a total of 20 points and grabbed two steals. Today against Oklahoma State, though, he scored 13 points and ripped off four steals from a very athletic backcourt. When Artis is performing like this along with contributions from Kazemi and Dotson, Oregon is very tough to beat. Certainly as Oklahoma State found today.

Star of the Game. Arsalan Kazemi, Oregon. If you can forgive his two #rimstuff missed dunks today, he was the best player on the floor for the Ducks. He was obsessively active around the rim on both ends, grabbing a ridiculous 17 rebounds (six offensive) while also going for 11 points in the win. His teammates Damyean Dotson and Dominic Artis were also instrumental to the victory, but Kazemi as the transfer senior wasn’t going to waste his opportunity to get an NCAA win for the first time in his career.

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I. Renko is an RTC correspondent. He filed this report from Lexington after Thursday’s Second Round game between Marquette and Davidson. Follow him on Twitter @IRenkoHoops.

Three Key Takeaways:

1. Marquette Saved Its Best for Last, and Davidson Saved Its Worst — After trailing for almost the entire second half and staring at a seven-point deficit with under two minutes to play, Marquette found the wherewithal to stage a March-worthy comeback. Through 38 minutes and 57 seconds, Marquette had shot 1-of-11 from three-point range, but they managed to drain three straight contested threes in the final 63 seconds, the last of which pulled them to within a point with 11 seconds left. And that’s when Davidson threw away the game. They’d committed just one turnover in the second half, in the face of heavy perimeter pressure. But De’mon Brooks chose the worst possible moment to throw a wild pass into the frontcourt that Nick Cochran could not track down. With the ball back and five seconds left, Marquette’s Vander Blue drove to the basket, and Davidson’s defense, which had contained dribble penetration all game, retreated, allowing him to convert a relatively easy layup to win the game with a second left.
   

   Vander Blue’s game-winning layup put Marquette to the third round and sent a devastated Davidson squad home. (AP)

2. This Was As Tough a Loss as They Come — For 39 minutes, Davidson withstood Marquette’s bruising physicality, even seeming to out-tough them at times. Their defense clamped down on Marquette’s guards, clogging the paint, shutting down their dribble penetration, and contesting shots all game. They held Marquette to just 34 percent field goal shooting (and 27 percent from three-point range). And when their hot three-point hand cooled off, they mustered enough offense against Marquette’s tough interior defense to be in a position to win. It was the kind of gutsy mid-major performance that makes March special, and it made the Wildcats’ collapse in the final minute all the more painful.
3. Marquette’s Aggression on the Boards Paid Off — Offensive rebounding is an important part of Marquette’s offensive attack, and at halftime, they had rebounded 10 of their 22 misses. But they converted these boards into just three second-chance points. That was  due, at least in part, to Davidson’s tough gang defense under the rim. But the Golden Eagles kept at it, and in the second half, they scored six key second-chance points late in the game.

Star of the Game: Vander Blue, Marquette’s leading scorer, had a mediocre offensive game overall, but he came through when it counted most. His three-pointer with 11 seconds to play pulled the Golden Eagles to within a point, and his drive and finish on the final play of the game gave us our first great Tournament moment.

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Will Tucker is a RTC correspondent. Will is covering the Auburn Hills pod of the Midwest Region. You can also find him on Twitter @blrdswag.

Three Key Takeaways.

1. Memphis is always a threat to get out and run. Even against the fifth-most efficient offense in the country, the Tigers found ways to capitalize on missed shots by getting out in transition and exploiting their athleticism. Outlet passes to a streaking Joe Jackson on blocks and defensive boards routinely led to points, as the shifty point guard would set up easy baskets for Tarik Black, D.J. Stephens and others. That advantage became less apparent as the Gaels’ cold shooting subsided, making fewer defensive rebounds available in the second half. But as St. Mary’s clawed back into the game, Memphis responded by turning up the defensive intensity, creating 19 points off turnovers with dunks and transition threes.
   

   It wasn’t easy, but Joe Jackson and Memphis advanced to the third round. (Getty)

2. Simply put, Shaq Goodwin needs to foul less. Goodwin sat for most of the first half after accumulating two fouls in the first three minutes, in yet another installment of his well-documented issues with personals. His 3.3 fouls per game ranks top 40 in the country, despite only playing 21 points per game. Which is exactly the issue, because Josh Pastner needs the powerful 6’9″ freshman on the court if the Tigers are going to take down Michigan State’s frontcourt. The abusive tandem of Derrick Nix (6’9″, 270) and Adreian Payne (6’10″, 240) already demonstrated earlier in the day how productive they can be when they get anywhere near the offensive glass. Memphis has a plethora of athletes, but outside of Goodwin and Tarik Black, they don’t have the bulk to contain Michigan State’s big men in the style of play Tom Izzo will try to dictate on Saturday.
3. Defensive rebounding and free throw shooting remain question marks for this club. Josh Pastner prioritized both after the Tigers shot 33% from the line and gave up an absurd number of second-chance opportunities in a loss to Xavier. The Tigers seemed to have reformed themselves since giving up 41.5% of available offensive boards to the Musketeers, but they allowed the Gaels to grab 15 offensive boards and score 17 second chance points today. They also shot 50% from the charity stripe, and made only 4-of-10 in the final three minutes, which left the door open for the Gaels to attempt a game-winning three at the buzzer that missed long.

Star of the Game. Joe Jackson, who posted team-highs of 14 points, 7 assists, and 6 rebounds, as well as orchestrating a beautiful transition offense that never let its foot off the gas. Discounting a crucial turnover at the end of the game, Jackson generally had a good awareness of time and situation, and helped hold Steve Holt and Matthew Dellavedova to a combined 4-of-23 from the field. (Co-star: Josh Pastner, who won his first NCAA Tournament game as a head coach.)

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Andrew Murawa is the RTC correspondent. Andrew is covering the Salt Lake City pod of the West Regional this weekend.

Three Key Takeaways.

1. Out-Tough. One of the concerns I had for Wichita State coming into the game was their ability to hang with Pitt, one of the nation’s best rebounding teams, on the glass. Despite being undersized almost all the way across the board, it was the Shockers who, shockingly, owned the glass. They grabbed 34.4% of their own misses and turned those boards into 14 points. The Shockers also earned their way to the line more than twice as much as the Panthers, getting to the line 41 times and converting 33 of their attempts from back there. And, perhaps most importantly, even as Pitt senior guard Tray Woodall admitted, the Shockers “got to most of the loose balls.” In a battle of two teams whose identity is based around toughness, the winner here was the team that was the toughest.
   

   Cleanthony Early was a big reason why the Shockers advanced to the third round. (AP)

2. Sometimes You Just Gotta Make Shots. It’s easy to look at the stat sheet and say, oh, Pitt was awful. But the Panthers got what they wanted at times on offense, getting into the lane and creating more shots in the paint than anywhere else. All told, 28 of their 54 shot attempts came within five feet of the basket, and yet, the Panthers missed 13 of those 28 attempts. Even worse, the Panthers only made six shots all day from outside of five feet, going 6/26 on jumpers. Sometimes it’s a real simple game; you gotta make shots.
3. Not A Thing Of Beauty. As you could have anticipated when this game first showed up in the bracket, this game was not exactly the type of game that is going to bring in a ton of new fans. Not that it wasn’t well played at times – it was, with both teams running good offense and playing hard-nosed defense – but it was rough and tumble, physical under the hoop and out at the perimeter. And, with neither team featuring many great jumpshooters or finishers, even when that good offense resulted in good looks, often those good looks went awry. In the end, the teams combined for 3-of-37 shooting (8.1%) from behind the arc and a 38.3 eFG%.

Star of the Game. Malcolm Armstead, Wichita State. Armstead did everything for the Shockers today, leading all scorers with 22 points, handing out five assists and even chipping in on the boards with four, including a couple offensive rebounds. And on a night where it seemed like just about everybody else had trouble shooting the ball, Armstead made 6-of-14 shots from the field and knocked down all nine of his free throws. Armstead didn’t limit his contributions to the offensive end either, as he was a key cog in helping to harass Pitt’s starting backcourt of Tray Woodall and James Robinson into 3-of-20 shooting and a seven turnovers. While Armstead gets the slight nod, his teammate Cleanthony Early also deserves mention, as he threw in 21 points and, normally more comfortable on the wing, helped out with seven rebounds, including three on the offensive end.

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